In a conventionally designed solid oxide fuel cell generator, a multiplicity of solid oxide fuel cells are arranged in a square or rectangular configuration with the rows connected in series and the columns connected in parallel as taught by Isenberg in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,395,468 and 4,490,444. While this arrangement works quite well in most respects, it results in a large temperature gradient between the hotter cells at the center of the generator and the cooler cells at the periphery, especially those at the corners. This large difference in temperature makes it difficult to maintain the temperature of all the cells in the generator within the narrow operating range of about 800.degree. to about 1100 .degree. C. Higher temperatures at the center of the generator may result in reduced life and material failures, and lower temperatures at the periphery increase the electrical resistance of the cells and reduce their efficiency. Obvious solutions to this problem, such as increasing the insulation around the generator, have proved to be impractical due to increased cost and size.
It is an object of this invention to reduce the temperature gradient between cells in a solid oxide fuel cell generator.